This week, the White House (once again) found itself in a state of crisis, as President @realDonaldTrump's fitness for office was repeatedly called into question.
What differentiated this from previous episodes is that the calls all came from inside the White House.
On Tuesday, the Washington Post published the first excerpts of Watergate scribe Bob Woodward's new book, which quotes various cabinet members, as well as current and former White House officials, casting doubt on Trump's intelligence, grip on reality, and truthfulness, among other things.
The next day, the New York Times published an anonymously (amomanously) written op-ed by a senior administration official which echoed many of the same sentiments expressed in Woodward's book, and added to the picture of a White House at war with itself.
Trump responded with his usual lack of restraint—calling the author a traitor, accusing the Times of endangering national security, and launching a full-scale witch hunt.
Needless to say, this did absolutely nothing to disprove the claims made by Woodward and anonymous.
Morning lineup:
Meet the Press: White House Counselor Kellyanne Conway; Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL); Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE); Roundtable: Democratic Strategist Cornell Belcher, Erick Erickson (Resurgent), Danielle Pletka (American Enterprise Institute) & Katy Tur (NBC News).
Face The Nation: Vice President Mike Pence; Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA); RNC Chair Ronna Romney McDaniel & DNC Chair Tom Perez; Roundtable: Rachael Bade (Politico), Mark Leibovich (New York Times Magazine), David Nakamura (Washington Post) & Amy Walter (Cook Political Report).
This Week: Former Trump Campaign Adviser George Papadopoulos; Roundtable: Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R), Democratic Strategist Stephanie Cutter, Lanhee Chen (Hoover Institution), Michelle Goldberg (New York Times) & Jonathan Karl (ABC News).
Fox News Sunday: Vice President Mike Pence; Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE); Roundtable: Katie Pavlich (Townhall), Republican Strategist Josh Holmes, Liz Marlantes (Christian Science Monitor) & Juan Williams (Fox News).
State of the Union: White House Counselor Kellyanne Conway; Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA); Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE); Roundtable: Nina Turner (Our Revolution), Bill Kristol (Weekly Standard), Democratic Strategist Jen Psaki & Republican Strategist David J. Urban.
Evening lineup:
60 Minutes will feature: an interview with Olympic gold medalist gymnast Aly Raisman (preview); and, a report on an Argentine polo team that uses cloned horses (preview).
Late night shows:
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Monday: Author Bob Woodward; Electronic Duo The Knocks feat. Foster the People.
Tuesday: Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson; Actor Michael Rapaport.
Wednesday: Actress Keira Knightley; Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-TX); Lifestyle Guru Martha Stewart.
Thursday: Actor Jason Bateman; John Heilemann (NBC News); Alex Wagner (The Atlantic); Folk Duo First Aid Kit.
Friday: Actress Anna Kendrick; Actress Judy Greer.
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
Monday: Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) & NBA Player Kevin Love; Tuesday: Singer Mitski; Wednesday: Actress Anna Kendrick; Thursday: Chef José Andrés.
Elsewhere...
Roy Moore and his wife sued Sacha Baron Cohen for defamation after he (correctly) implied that Moore is a pedophile.
Failed Republican US Senate candidate Roy Moore has filed a multimillion dollar lawsuit against comedian Sacha Baron Cohen after he fell for a prank on the actor's TV show months after his campaign ended.
Moore was interviewed by Cohen, who pretended to be an Israeli anti-terrorism expert who had a "pedophile detector." During the episode, the device -- which looks like a hand-held metal detector -- was shown beeping near Moore, implying that he was a pedophile.
Moore and his wife, Kayla, are suing Cohen, Showtime and its corporate owner, CBS, for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress and fraud in connection with the episode, according to a federal complaint filed Wednesday in the District of Columbia. They are seeking more than $95 million in damages.
The Moores claim that the defendants falsely portrayed Roy Moore as a "a pedophile and sex offender" on national television and worldwide.
And, in other news...
A member of Trump's "media advisory board"—which may or may not actually exist—claimed that Trump is the brainiest president ever.
Gina Loudon, a member of Trump's "media advisory board" and author of the book Mad Politics, told Fox News host Sean Hannity: "My book actually uses science and real data and true psychological theory to explain why it is quite possible that this president is the most sound-minded person to ever occupy the White House."
"Literally, liberals' heads are going to explode at what you just said," Hannity replied.
"They're exploding right now," she laughed.
On Twitter, Loudon repeated her claim in somewhat less scientific terms.
"The country is better than its ever been, but Trump is mean waaaaah wahhhhh!!" she wrote, followed by some crying emojis and "can we move on?"
Just shoot me.
– Trix